Christian Law

In this ambitious work, the author seeks to survey and compare the canon law of 10 major Christian denominations, with the aim of distilling from them common principles of ‘Christian Law’. The traditions covered are the Catholic, Orthodox, Anglican, Lutheran, Methodist, Presbyterian, Reformed, Congregational, United, and Baptist—in other words covering a wide spectrum of ecclesial forms. Inevitably, the sources relied on become more selective and exemplary as one moves from hierarchical to congregational forms of church government. And it is an equally inevitable consequence, although one not reflected upon in the text, that groups of Christians operating outside of relatively large-scale juridical structures are not represented at all. For there is no sociology of organized Christianity in this book. Instead, after a brief introduction, each chapter deals meticulously with the formal sources of canon law in each denomination, concluding with a statement of principle—a normative statement which is as specific as it can be, and as abstract as it has to be, to capture the spirit of the laws. These principles are then restated at the end of the book. Each of the 10 chapters generates five principles. Very occasionally, this scheme comes across as a little too convenient (eg it is not obvious that confession and funerals belong together in one principle). And very occasionally some substance sneaks into a principle which is not supported in the main text: principles of the interpretation of law (5) and due process (15) seemed to this reader at any rate to owe rather more to the author’s own legal background than the formal canon law sources he cited.

Canon Law · Christianity · Confession (law) · Interpretation (philosophy) · Normative · Political science · Sociology · Statement (logic) · Theology · Law · Multicultural Socio-Legal Studies · Philosophy · Religious Freedom and Discrimination · Theology and Canon Law Studies